Good morning, it’s Monday, September 23, 2024. In today’s edition, Newsom signs social media law; Arizona voters back abortion amendment; top Robinson staffers quit campaign:
Top Stories
SOCIAL MEDIA: California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Friday signed legislation requiring social media companies to provide teens with chronological feeds, rather than algorithmic feeds. The measure follows a similar New York law passed earlier this year. Companies will have until 2027 to develop age verification methods. (Pluribus News)
ENVIRONMENT: California Gov. Newsom also signed bills to ban the distribution of plastic bags at grocery stores. He signed a first-in-the-nation bill to ban the sale of leaded aviation fuel at state airports by 2031. Leaded fuel is used in smaller planes with piston engines. (Pluribus News)
ABORTION: A federal judge has blocked Tennessee’s law banning adults from helping minors get an abortion without parental permission. The judge ruled the law unconstitutionally limited free speech. (Associated Press)
LGBTQ RIGHTS: The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of an Alabama policy requiring people to show proof of gender reassignment surgery before the sex designation their driver’s license can be changed. The ruling overturns a 2021 district court decision that put the policy on hold. (AL.com)
AID IN DYING: Delaware Gov. John Carney (D) has vetoed legislation that would have legalized medical aid in dying. The bill did not win enough support in the legislature to override Carney’s veto. New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer (D), the frontrunner to succeed Carney in November’s election, has expressed support for the bill. (Delaware Public Media)
EDUCATION: Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser (D) is offering $50,000 in grants to school districts that put in place policies to get cell phones out of the classroom. Weiser’s office issued the first grant to a school district in Mesa County. (Colorado Public Radio)
LEGISLATURES: New Jersey’s Assembly State and Local Government Committee unanimously approved legislation that would allow lawmakers to use federal assistance and grants to hire college students as interns. The bill would allow lawmakers to pay students a $1,000 weekly stipend. (New Jersey Globe)
In Politics & Business
NORTH CAROLINA: Four senior staffers on Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson’s (R) campaign quit their positions Sunday in the wake of CNN’s reports on Robinson’s online behavior. Those exiting included chief strategist Conrad Pogorzelski and campaign manager Chris Rodriguez. (WUNC)
Attorney General Josh Stein (D) leads Robinson 47%-37% in a survey conducted mostly before CNN’s report came out on Friday. (New York Times)
ARIZONA: A new New York Times/Siena poll finds Arizona’s Proposition 139, guaranteeing a constitutional right to an abortion up to fetal viability, wins support of 58% of likely voters, while 35% say they are opposed. A third of Trump supporters and two-thirds of independents support the measure. (New York Times)
GEORGIA: The State Board of Elections voted Friday to require a hand count of all ballots in this year’s election, a last-minute reversal that critics say will slow down election results. County elections directors unanimously opposed the mandate. Attorney General Chris Carr’s (R) office warned the rule runs afoul of state law. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
MAINE: Gun safety supporters have launched a petition to qualify a ballot measure implementing extreme risk protection orders, also known as “red flag” laws. They hope to collect 75,000 signatures to qualify for the ballot in 2025 or 2026. (Maine Public Radio)
PEOPLE: Former Washington Gov. Dan Evans (R) died Friday at age 98. Evans served three terms as governor and one term in the U.S. Senate. As president of Evergreen State College, he once rappelled down the campus clock tower. (Seattle Times)
MORE: Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) has hired Sam Dubke as her new communications director, her office will announce today. Dubke is a veteran of U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R) office and Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s (R) 2021 campaign.
By The Numbers
$103.1 million: The amount federal agencies have spent cleaning up and recovering from the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in March. The Army Corps of Engineers spent the most, $74 million, followed by the Coast Guard, $22 million. (WYPR)
$194 million: The amount Kansas residents bet on sports in February 2023. Because Kansas exempts some “free” bets offered through promotions, the state collected just $1,134 — not a typo — on those bets. (KCUR)
2.4%: The decline in greenhouse gas emissions in California in 2022 from the year before. More than half those reductions are attributable to electric vehicles and cargo trucks that run on biofuels instead of diesel, according to the California Air Resources Board. (Los Angeles Times)
Off The Wall
Vice President Tom Walz? Elections officials in Palm Beach County emailed ballots to overseas and military voters with a typo in Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s (D) name. Elections officials said the mistake was limited to 257 ballots that were immediately corrected. (New York Times)
First responders in North Attleboro, Mass., spent Sunday chasing eight bulls that escaped from a rodeo being held in a mall parking lot. Seven of the eight bulls were corralled by late afternoon, and no one — spectator or bovine — was hurt. (Associated Press)
Rayne Beau, a 2-year old seal point Siamese cat, went missing from a campground in Yellowstone National Park in June — and made it all the way to Roseville, Calif., near its owners’ home, eight weeks later. The cat lost a lot of weight, but it’s safely back home now. (Los Angeles Times)
Quote of the Day
“Give it up, go get a hobby, go play golf or something.”
— Florida Sen. Jason Pizzo (D), urging his party to nominate someone new for governor in 2026, rather than a candidate who has run for high office before. Pizzo said it was too early to announce a campaign of his own, but that he likes his chances. (Orlando Sentinel)